For lack of an OKPhilosophy board, the only place I have to plant my thoughts are here. GD has been my temporary vacate, but most of you might remember me by HalleluYAH.

In some ways GD is like an OKPhilosophy board…This is a Khalil Gibran poem that I posted a few weeks back…a little birdie told me abt it as little birdies are often the messengers of my life. I had a chance to reread it last night and felt the urge to comment on a few of its lines and the meanings that they hold for me.

Some people view activism as an outward act. Something you do in league with a movement or organizational group of some sort. While I support volunteerism and the like, above all else I support real dedication and loyalty of the heart, mind and spirit. Although it may matter little to some of you who will read this, I feel it important to re-iterate that activism without dedication is nought.

Often times, I see many people around me rally together for a cause on Mondays, Wednesdays and Sundays…but the rest of the week is left open for personal time. I say we should focus on our personal time more than we focus on anything around us and outside of us. As the old adage goes: You can not ever help someone else unless you learn to help yourself. Please see: http://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=4&topic_id=380307&mesg_id=380307&page=2#380687 for my actual thoughts on this matter.

As such I pose the question, how many of you have only reached the fourth level and stopped? How many of you have made it back after having reached the fourth level? Self progression and realization is a never ending movement and should be…we are constantly changing in fact that is the only thing that remains constant. However we must all take that journey back in order to truly help ourselves and the world around us and more importantly I feel that we shd encourage others to do so.

So I wd like to inspire a few minds to partake with me in this exercise. Below I have posted the poem in question. I will ofcourse comment on the lines as well, but I wd also like to know your opinion on them and perhaps if any, what it inspires within you. Let the reasononing begin.

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When you tell your trouble to your neighbor you present him with a part of your heart. If he possesses a great soul, he thanks you; if he possesses a small one, he belittles you.

Progress is not merely improving the past; it is moving forward toward the future.

A hungry savage picks fruit from a tree and eats it; a hungry civilized man buys it from a man who, in turn, buys it from the man who picks it.

Art is one step from the visibly known toward the unknown.

The earth breathes, we live; it pauses in breath, we die.

Man’s eye is a magnifier; it shows him the earth much larger than it is.

I abstain from the people who consider insolence, bravery and tenderness cowardice. And I abstain from those who consider chatter wisdom and silence ignorance.

They tell me: If you see a slave sleeping, do not wake him lest he be dreaming of freedom.

I tell them: If you see a slave sleeping, wake him and explain to him freedom.

Contradiction is a lower degree of intelligence.

Bravery is a volcano; the seed of wavering does not grow on its crater.

The river continues on its way to the sea, broken the wheel of the mill or not.

The greater your joy or your sorrow, the smaller the world in your eyes.

Learning nourishes the seed but it gives you no seed of its own.

I use hate as a weapon to defend myself; had I been strong, I would never have needed that kind of weapon.

There are among the people murderers who have never committed murder, thieves who have never stolen and liars who have spoken nothing but the truth.

Keep me away from the wisdom which does not cry, the philosophy which does not laugh and the greatness which does not bow before children.

O great intelligent Being! Hidden and existing in and for the universe, You can hear me because You are within me and You can see me because You are all-seeing; please drop within my soul a seed of Your wisdom to grow a sapling in Your forest and to give of Your fruit.

To Repair The Indestructible and to Paint the Ocean Wave with Sand.

When you tell your trouble to your neighbor you present him with a part of your heart. If he possesses a great soul, he thanks you; if he possesses a small one, he belittles you.

I have seen examples where more than 80% of the people I come in contact with whether personal or purely superficial and in a totally objective way display the latter type of behaviour.

Sometimes I am appalled at the ways in which people who themselves are hurting inside will attack others out of that hurt. Sometimes I am at a loss of how to reach out and help those kinds of people. Often times I may react out of my own hurt and make matters worse. Lately I have noticed that I am able to take certain ridicule much easier than in my past, but that only helps me.

Now I am striving to show love to those who are hurt to show them that there are other ways that we can be, that negative/taking vibrations only end up being negative/taking of ourselves. Emotionally it is draining, mentally it is suffocating and does no thing for our bodies physically.

How am I doing this? Well, I continue to share my life stories with others no matter what. Despite my fears of opening my heart to those who would see it closed and bitter. I made a vow to my self to continue to be generous to be kind and loving and to always strive to remember this vow when waves of anger and doubt threaten to drown me. It is in this vow to my self that I have found some peace. Finally. To you, I would encourage the same. To always share, it is communication in unity. Through these experiences that we have with others even if brief, we pass on love and develop spirit true all ties that will continue through out perpetuity.

If I can touch one man, one woman one child one soul, with my smile, by opening that door or by simple conversation then I am happy. It is these sharing moments that will live on in the memories of others.

When you take the time to give of yourself in such a way you give more than just a story, you give a piece of your divinity.

..maybe this is what we need at the moment, instead of talk of politics and revolution. Some people are so far removed from themselves.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

...or a deep awareness of and sympathy for another's suffering is what some people lack. This quality is usually not highly valued in today's society and, as a result, people were "masks" to protect themselves and keep their innermost feelings to themselves for fear of ridicule. Consequently, people may self-medicate or take out their frustrations on others and it becomes a cycle.

To have an intellectual and emotional awareness and understanding of another person's thoughts, feelings, and behavior, even those that are distressing and disturbing, is a way to create a positive space for healing. Empathy emphasizes understanding, sympathy emphasizes sharing, of another person's feelings and experiences.

When someone confides in me I see it as a blessing and sometimes amazing things can happen.

<--- Blame this lady for Nutty.

"Empathy emphasizes understanding, sympathy emphasizes sharing, of another person's feelings and experiences"

It seems very simple at first, but these words are very important, empathy and sympathy. Especially in these days and times where we are becoming so desensitized.

Eventually we will come to the realization that when you stop feeling. You stop existing.

This is something that I am slowly learning to do. open my self to feeling and not leading my self down the path of denial.

It's what alot of us need to do.

Progress is not merely improving the past; it is moving forward toward the future.

..but what about the present?

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

If the past is already done and the future is yet to come...

then in NOW time progress wd be to improve upon the past things that we have done and move towards the future in NOW time with those things learned and corrected.

A hungry savage picks fruit from a tree and eats it; a hungry civilized man buys it from a man who, in turn, buys it from the man who picks it.

To all those who would rather make their own than support what is already there and available.

A community should have one market, one book store, one clothing store and etc. We should band together to support what is already there and create an outlet for what is not.
This is the only way that we can truly support each other.

Any other way only takes from ourselves.

..i dont know, i've been a victim of that mentality because i "dont fit in". apparently.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

One day I was walking with him throughteh streets of DC...he was putting up flyers on Georgia ave...

he wd take down other flyers and throw tehm on the ground...when I asked him why he was littering his response was that it this was not a blessed land. That this "American" land was cursed and bloodied, infact he said even the land in Israel was bloodied...and one of the reasons they did not adhere to the Shabbat day was because of this.

I was taken aback. I'm sure he realized it, our entanglement later fizzled out becasue of these minor differences.

For the life of me I can't overstand why people who claim to advocate for peace, pride and higher evolution still litter.

Our movements would be nothing if the planet ceases to exist.

Man’s eye is a magnifier; it shows him the earth much larger than it is.

Greed is man’s worst enemy. It is the cause of all dis-ease and war. This quote sums up moch more than greed though. A lot of people are more caught up with helping others across land and see than they are with helping the people around them in their own neighborhoods and even families.

I can’t help the whole world. I can’t help the whole world and not help my own family. The scales will still be imbalanced. In order for me to help the world, I MUST help my self and then my family and then reach out further and further till everyone is touched by my heart and my spirit.

I believe that it can happen and so it will.

..the avalanche theory?

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

I abstain from the people who consider insolence, bravery and tenderness cowardice. And I abstain from those who consider chatter wisdom and silence ignorance.

..to the wise ear however, chatter reveals much wisdom.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

When I was a kid, people perceived me as weak. I was a "free-spirit" who liked nature, helping others, and making things. I had a talent (art) and people called me "shy". "Why are you always so quiet?", they would ask. Of course, I had no clue but in reality I had both the ability to be introverted and extroverted. I learned that an introvert processes information internally or inwardly, by thinking about it and mulling it over...usually before acting or doing something. Family members pressured my mother to do something about my attitude because I was being impractical. They did not understand that I wanted balance.

I think people see tenderness and introversion as weak because it requires openness and to be open makes one vulnerable. People are sometimes afraid of other people. We hide behind aliases, other people's ideas and beliefs to feel safe.

I spend a good deal of my time in solitude because of all the outward activity during the day. It helps me to create much needed balance. The introvert and extrovert "attitudes" show how a person understands and receives their energy. People have to know when to be outgoing and focus on people and things. There is also a time to be introspective and focus on thoughts and ideas.

<--- Blame this lady for Nutty.

..do you ever worry about people making fun of you?

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

>..do you ever worry about people making fun of you?

Not any more (see post #53). Kids used to pick on me all the time and I used to internalize it but there was something else. It really wasn't about them. It was me. Once I focused on boosting my self awareness (esteem and worth) I was able to turn those challenges into opportunities. By high school, I was picked on less and less. I tried being the one who dished out the insults and I was good at it but at the end of the day I did not feel any better. I decided to be more understanding and aware. It worked.

<--- Blame this lady for Nutty.

They tell me: If you see a slave sleeping, do not wake him lest he be dreaming of freedom.

I tell them: If you see a slave sleeping, wake him and explain to him freedom.

The slave in this line represents the many of us who are deaf dumb and blind, it may even represent myself. Where as others may have had some one to wake them up. I have struggled for quite some time trough my sleep paralysis to wake.
This line is very symbolic. It speaks to the apathetic nature that is running rampant among this world’s population and even still to the blind causes of most of our leaders whose antics it seems help to just further the sleep of their followers.

Many people say that they are light sleepers, some say don’t sneak up on them when they are sleeping because they will attack, others are so knocked out that you can walk right up to them and they won’t wake.

I am not like that. When I am resting if you stare at me I will wake, and likewise if I stare at you, you will wake as well. I don’t what that means if it means anything at all, but I thought it was also symbolic of everyday life.

When you try to show some people the more communal way of doing things in tune rather than in rebellion some will catch on easily and wake, others will fight you down to the ground. Then there are some like myself who know better but have to be reminded and too can help to wake others.

If you see me sleeping, wake me!

..i'd better light a cigarette. its the gentlest way of waking someone up.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

i used to say art is a long way for a short cut.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

A lot of people contradict themselves. When I attended Ithaca College, my polisci teacher whose name is Naeem, said once that “Contradictions are a way of telling you that the person who is struggling with them is actually struggling with something that means a lot to them.” He said that contradictions are a good sign that someone is struggling with their inner truths and that is not bad at all. This has always stuck with me.

Almost 8 years later, I find my self still quoting this to people.

..aye i think people expect everybody else to be easy to understand. Probably the same people who never questioned themselves in the first place.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

I am a warrior, a rebel, a tyrant of sorts my mother calls me.

My heart is fore much. I fear no thing except for not being able to leave this plane when I die.

I am almost haphazard.

Each day I do something that surprises me...today it is this post.

But as I release my fears, and doubts of rejetion and ridicule I learn to be even more confident tomorrow.

Do you kow what it feel slike to get up and walk, when each step your foot trembles, but you keep walking, without looking back, without fear you hold your head up and keep walking.

I walk tall, through this land and I will continue to walk tall, for my self. Because I am free, because I am, because I can and no thing can stop me.

..wouldnt you like to have a destination?

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

My post was abt the journey there.

The river continues on its way to the sea, broken the wheel of the mill or not.

This is the earth rotation around the sun.
This is a ball of gas exploding.
this is the sound of the universe: ohm
This is.

How many times I have felt that my pain is so great I can only begin to tell you. I realized abt two years ago that my pain is no different from your and your from his and his from hers. We all share pain, we all share love and happiness. Our pain and our joy does not separate or individualize us.

This is a tough lesson for most people to grasp. Most people see their pain as greater than others. I had to learn that I am no greater and as such no less than others around me. My experiences do not separate me, instead they make me even closer to every unit of life because they validate my existence.

The world is smaller to those who are so self ish that their pain or their joy overwhelms them so. Because then their world is only made up of themselves.

..the irony is by not recognising that they probably cause more pain in the process.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

..so to teach is to tend to flowers that grow?

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

..or maybe just watering them now and again and removing the parts that are dead.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

I use hate as a weapon to defend myself; had I been strong, I would never have needed that kind of weapon.

There are among the people murderers who have never committed murder, thieves who have never stolen and liars who have spoken nothing but the truth.

but truth is defined by the lies that hide it.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

Keep me away from the wisdom which does not cry, the philosophy which does not laugh and the greatness which does not bow before children.

O great intelligent Being! Hidden and existing in and for the universe, You can hear me because You are within me and You can see me because You are all-seeing; please drop within my soul a seed of Your wisdom to grow a sapling in Your forest and to give of Your fruit.

To Repair The Indestructible and to Paint the Ocean Wave with Sand.

this was Gibran’s summary end. It is perhaps one of the most beautiful endings I have read. When I read this poem for the first time I got goose bumps. I could feel the power of the words and the compassion of the author’s spirit.

It stirred within me many different notions and memories and I’ve actually been re-inspired by these words.

The first: O great intelligent Being! Hidden and existing in and for the universe

Made me feel as though I too were crying out to the universe and the I conscience within me

Then: You can hear me because You are within me and You can see me because You are all-seeing;
Reminded me that I am in and of this universe. I Am. Within me you will find god, devil, everything there in and without for I am of and not separate from this and all planes. It reminded me of my own eternity of which even I am not fully aware. As I am trodding in this land, there are moments when I am one with all around me, brief moments when I disappear and am no thing and every thing. My life has taken me in and out of many different flesh stations of mind soul and spirit.
This quote reached inside me and found the place where I wd like to rest my feet.

Finally: please drop within my soul a seed of Your wisdom to grow a sapling in Your forest and to give of Your fruit.

To Repair The Indestructible and to Paint the Ocean Wave with Sand.

When I was growing up I always felt pain, pain for my self and for others. I was not first class, but in Jamaica, I lived very well. I didn’t know suffering, poverty, illiteracy, racism or even classism existed.

When I moved here in 92 I experienced racism for the first time, when my mother and brother and I were driving down Pembroke pines rd in Miramar, FL…a burgundy pick up truck pulled up beside us…when the light turned green, the two white men in the back picked up a shotgun and pointed at us, as though they were cocking back to shoot. I didn’t understand why.

I did my 9th grade year at Miami Carol City highschool, I was in their law magnet program and was as such kept away from the general population. In my class we had a mixture of latinos, people from the carribbean and a handful of white Americans. One day during a conversation they told me that I was black. I was only 13 at the time and still very quiet. I responded loud and proud and said “No I am not black, I am Jamaican.”

They all laughed at me. I couldn’t understand why. I didn’t know racism, In Jamaica it was something that I had seen on TV. And so it was not something that I even understood much less to know that in this country I had an identity and it was black.

Within me, I know that I possess a certain gift. It is the gift to understand and empathize with those around me, My higher calling is one of a healer’s path. When I reflect on when I was younger I guess I knew that others around me were depraved, but I could not overstand why.

In my fifth and sixth grade years, I went to Columbus prep in St. Ann’s Bay. There was a man a bum if you will…who we call mad men or women…his name was mad man terry…they said he was so smart that he went crazy…the other students would give him money and he would recite the Spanish alphabet or count from 1-10 in Arabic….I would always look him in the eye, I was only 9 and ten….and he would always look away…I never asked him to recite anything I guess I always felt uncomfortable.. but mad man terry would talk to me…and I would sit by the fence and talk to him…

I don’t know maybe it’s the fela playing in my back ground but this quote upon reading it now reminds me of all of this.

There was a seed planted in me, I don’t know at what age. I don’t know if it’s my parents and their lives or my grandparents who had a lot to do with my education in my early years. But it is these and a lot more that makes me who I am, that allows me to love hard and give plenty that blesses my steps and keeps me enraptured in its protective embrace.

This is what I have to share, this is what YOU have to share. Indeed, to repair the indestructible ---here is my handful of beach sand.

My mother has a degree in philosophy and she let me have a pocket-sized edition of this book when I was a teenager. I've had it ever since and still read it from time to time. Here's one of my favorite quotes from the book:

"Life is an island, rocks are its desires, trees its dreams, flowers its loneliness, and it is in the middle of an ocean of solitude and seclusion. Your life is an island separated from all other islands and continents. Regardless of how many boats you send to other shores or how many ships arrive upon your shores, you yourself are an island separated by its own pains, secluded in its happiness and far away in its compassion and hidden in its secrets and miseries.---Your inner soul is surrounded with solitude and seclusion. Were it not for this solitude and this seclusion you would not be you and I would not be I. If it were not for that solitude and seclusion, I would, if I heard your voice, think myself to be speaking; yet, if I saw your face, I would imagine that I were looking into a mirror."

Despite the fact that we are all "islands" we do have plenty of opportunities to visit others. We should be able to relate, to empathize with the happiness and suffering of others.

When I was 12, I spent a month in a hospital because I was severely depressed. I was there with a bunch of kids, ages 4-14. Each one of those kids had their own issues and challenges to overcome. It was amazing to me because childhood is something we all share but we had lost some part of that and we were suffering. We were there 24-7, under lock and key. I spent many of those hours listening to the other kids. One of the things I was supposed to work on (for myself) was being more social and proactive about my physical appearance. I panicked when the group prepared to go to the gym. I cried on my bed and refused to go. Minutes later someone came and got me. All of the kids were still there waiting for me. They refused to go unless I came. I was shocked and found the courage to go with them. These kids were willing to give up a chance to get out for recreation for me. I never forgot that gesture.

After a month, I left the hospital as a patient but a year or so later I returned as a volunteer and worked there until I graduated from high school. Why? The experience I had as a patient there had changed my life for the better and I wanted to give something back. I was no longer lost on my island and I realized I could be both introverted and extroverted. I could be both practical and compassionate.

<--- Blame this lady for Nutty.

...well yer openess and sincereity is to be applauded.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

www.northernarc.net
www.myspace.com/egyptianknight

Songs that get more run in Springtime:
Tela- Sho'nuff, Brandnewheavies-Sometimes, Showbiz & A.G.-?, JayZ- Can't Knock da Hustle, Buju- Chuck it so.

It's ok. I meditated on these lines for over a month, before I have been able to collect my thoughts on what exactly I learned from it.

take your time, I wd like this to be an exercise in which we all take our time to think abt each line and its meaning to us.

I hope this will inspire you to think abt your response and what raw emotion if any is brought out of you when you read some of these lines.

Some of you may not feel it all at that level, maybe for it's literary eloquence or for its social, economical , environmental and spiritual commentary....

Post and repost with newer thoughts and ideas...

Let's do some critical thinking.

..another question. do you think the way you talk about things could alienate the very people you would like to help?

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

however i speak with my heart first. i can only be me, and you be you.

We are all here together, learning together, I speak and write to share not to alienate.

If I say it or write it I mean it. This is often the first step...


I do have a problem with being authoritative at work...I have considered it and decided that it is best that I remain direct and straightforward as long as my intention is in the right place.

For those who are offended because they cannot understand i will help them to understand.

..o.k...maybe i just prefer different methods of teaching or passing ideas on to people. you can lead a horse to water but you cant make it drink.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

And some say: "Don't waste your pearls on pigs. Because they don't know its value and so they will just trample it"

I don't agree with either saying. You can lead a horse to water and surely if that horse is thirsty it will drink.

For some people hunger has to be built up for others certain hungers are ignored for other satisfactions.

When i feel as though I am being alienated the first thing i ask my self is: Is it me? Am I projecting my own negative/taking perceptions?
Most of the world that we see is a combination of our experiences, broughtupsy, etc....therefore when I feel a certain way abt a subject...I know that it is really a reflection of my self.

This thought process followed with putting my best positive/giving foot forward leads me to banish those types of downpressive thoughts from my being.

I still remain positive/giving abt this post...irregardless of who i reach. Because my whole point is to do so, and so far I have been successful.

:)

I know people who run around all day without drinking enough water. Of course, metaphorically, people who might need some specific information may overlook the sources where the info is. I don't think the aim should be to reach everyone because that's not realistic. If only a few people are inspired they could later inspire others.

<--- Blame this lady for Nutty.

the whole process of alienation is far more complex than a mere negativity. what i'm trying to say is your language and use of language i find alienating because of my own cultural background. now, i've been educated and learned about other cultures, arts, politics social theories so i'd consider myself pretty open minded, but some one from my background, or indeed any number of disenfranchised backgrounds might have difficulty relating to you. thats all i'm saying.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

So tell me what it is that you find abt my language to be so alienating?

Perhaps I too can learn from your observations.

..i think it's just the spiritual tone to the whole thing. personally it doesn't alienate me too much, i enjoy reading it and watching your understandings of things, maybe it just goes over people heads, or the difficulty is for other people to connect this with their daily lives. i guess that's why i write poetry. to try and communicate things beyond immediately reality, but using a language that is directly connected to that reality.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

It's my aquarius rising.

I strive to make my tone as plain as possible. sometimes when i'm really feeling it the words just flow right out of my heart.

Really.

If you could see me, you would also see that Im very animated when i speak this way too...

usually i am motioning from my lips my heart and i am usually touching the person I'm talking to.

I've come to terms with my expressiveness...it's something that I really can not change. it happens too because I am a poet...check out my site below ad read pre-Sent if you can...that was written some 5 years ago...i've toned down a little since then too.


It's easier though for people to feel it when i am speaking with them in person...because my energy is bountiful...on these screens very little of that energy is reflected.

..exactly my feelings on the medium. It's got many uses, but personally (i've spent a couple of years on the internet) this isn't very good for me to be so isolated and not have any human contact. Having said that this is good place for sorting your ideas out and clarifying your thoughts.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.

And that's exactly what I want to inspire people to do.

Just take a moment, let's focus our thoughts on something simple as this man's poem and clarify and sort our thoughts out.

I know for me it has helped me to settle some of the things that have been bustling in my head all weekend.

I can only trust that it will do the same for someone else.

..i guess if you know how to balance yourself, what you can do with this is give people somewhere to start...y'know like clues and pointers if nothing else. probably one of the most worrying things about this age of technology is the disoreintation caused by it. It's difficult to locate yourself.

...guess what, you can't swing in scotland either.